Falling
by eclipse of thy heart
Summary: Living in heaven or hell? I can't really decide. But something tells me I was never really living in heaven until I fell into hell. Then, I was finally able to experience heaven only to be ripped right back into hell again. When will this ever end? one sh


Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin, I wish I did but I don't. The story was amazing but I'd probably end it a little differently with a little more romance - that's how I no it's not mine (lol other than it having someone else name on it). Anyway, on with my story… er fic.

Falling Caged behind dirty iron bars like some animal, there lay a lump of scarred skin and bones. 'Is that all I am to them an animal to be tested on? No. Not all of them think that way.' An image of a raven hair beauty flashed before the thing's face. The thing gave a moan and struggled to sit up. It was in fact a man, yet could hardly be called a man. Dry blood and dirt was caked all over him and he hardly had any clothes at all; if you could call boxers that were ripped in several places, clothes. Despite the small holes in the boxers, he was left with some decency. The "man's" ribs were showing and his stomach sunk in under them. His arms and legs were very bony and looked fragile like they would break any minute. There was an array of scars all over his body, ranging from deep to shallow, long to short. But what was the most unique feature about this "man", which was probably why he was in this situation to beginning with, was the pair of wings on his back. His pair of once beautiful, strong, white wings, were now gray and haggard looking. One wing was sticking out in a different direction than it should be and most of the feathers on both wings were missing. There was a broken look in the angel's once wild amethyst eyes. He had a scar in the shape of on X on his cheek. His dirty red hair spilled over his shoulders in a tangled mess. 

'I've got to get out of here and get to her! What have they done to you? Did they hurt you? Have they done more than that?' The angel grimaced at the thought of his raven hair beauty's lifeless body. In the back of his mind, he knew the consequence of messing with the plans of the project.

Sighing, the angel lifted his head off of his knee to survey the room outside the cell. There was a desk and a chair, nothing more nothing less, with one way out a staircase leading up to the "experimenting room". One light bubble, which hung from the ceiling, provided the only light in the room. This was the room they kept him in, guarded at all times. One man with a tranquilizer gun, that could put an elephant to sleep for week, was all that ever guarded him now. They believed him to be too weak now to escape like he did in the past. The angel chuckled painfully at the thought. But right now, there wasn't a single person in the room.

'I just lost the will to escape, besides the fact that they've had you drugged up so bad for a whole year.' Gold glint appeared then disappeared in the angel's eyes so fast that it was hard to tell if it was ever there. An evil smirk appeared across the dirt-smeared face of the angel. 'They seemed to have because lax with the procedure. Don't underestimate them! Remember what happened last time we did,' the angel's eyes flashed indignantly. 'I won't make that mistake again! But seriously where is everyone?'

The angel stared at the keys sitting on the desk and they started to shake. Suddenly, they lifted up into the air and floated over into the cell and dropped into the angel's up lifted palm. The angel pushed himself up with his hands swaying dangerously in the process. Shoulder slumped, the angel stumbled over to the bars and finally got the keys in the lock after a few attempts. He pushed the iron bars open and winced at the loud creak it made.

'Better hurry someone had to have heard that.'

'You don't think I don't know that!'

The angel stumbled over to the steps and started to climb them. 'It's been a while since I've been able to walk on my own.'

'Yea we're usually too duped up on drugs to be able to walk without support and sometimes being carried. We're lucky that we aren't human otherwise our muscles would have deteriorate from lack of use.'

The angel leaned heavily on the wall as he trudged up the never-ending spiral staircase. Panting and sweating profusely, the angel nearly fell over at the top step. The fluorescent lights burned his eyes, since his eyes were used to the barely lit stairwell. He quickly straightened up and squinted around the room to see if his captors were anywhere in sight. The white room was empty other than the table with straps, computers, and other equipment they used to experiment on him. The angel raised his head to look up into the window to see if any of the "doctors" were standing in the next room.

Not a single doctor was standing there talking nor anyone else for that matter. 'They're probably there, somewhere in the back, where I can't see them.' Slowly the angel trudged over to the only door in the room that lead up to where the "doctors" kept all of the information about him. Reaching out a shaky, angel proceeded to try to open the door. The doorknob turned and the door opened. The angel stood there, wide-eyed at the fact that the door was unlocked.

'Ok, tell me now that there isn't something wrong. They never have this door unlocked. I don't think it's a trap but what could it be that has them so preoccupied that everyone left there stations and the doors unlocked as well.'

'No clue. I can't imagination what could be so important for them to make such a big mistake. Let's not dread on it anymore, since this is to our advantage.' Nodding, the angel started up the stairs to the next door which would lead him to the information storage room.

He tried the next door and again it was unlocked. He slowly pushed the door open and peeked inside to see how many people were in the room. The angel's eyebrow shot up at the fact that not a single person was in the room, a fact that confused him greatly. He knew that there was always at least one person in that room working. All the computers were on and all the information about him was sitting there open for anyone to get at.

'Delete all the information about us. You know what will happen if the higher ups find out about this.'

'Don't you think I thought about that already? I'm very tempted to blow all the hard drives away but it would take too much time to do them all. Even if I did, they still have written reports as well. The most important thing right now is to get out of here before someone comes back and finds us. We can figure out what to do about that later when we have recovered to full strength.'

'Fine!'

The angel started over to the door to see if this one would be unlock as the other two were. He gingerly pushed the door opened to see if he would be ambushed on the other side of the door by "soldiers". He snorted at the word; soldier wasn't the right name for them. More like assassins, hit men etc… He almost hated them as much, maybe even more than the "doctors". Both tortured him in different ways. Then again, it was almost the same thing.

He was blasted by the roaring sounds of sirens going off. However, not a single person was in the halls. He quickly crept through the halls, looking for an exit. He didn't head for a main one just in case the building really wasn't empty. He turned a corner and almost ran headfirst into a "soldier". But he was lucky since the soldier was alone and had his back to him. He quickly backed away from him, turned, and fled.

'So it isn't a ghost asylum as we thought.'

'Now isn't time for jokes. We really have to move before our distraction disappears.'

And suddenly it started; every corner he turned that would lead to an escape had a soldier guarding it. Frustrated at his failed attempts to escape, he headed to the last place he could think of, even if it wouldn't do for making an escaping, he would think of a way, he always has. Adrenaline rushing through his veins, he rushed to the staircase that could be his only escape. He skidded to a halt just at the corner in order to peek around it so as to not run into a "soldier". Breathing a sigh of relief, he walked around the corner and started up the long winding staircase. Reaching the top of the stairs, he dropped to his knees from exhaustion. The angel knew he was to malnourished too keep going on like this for much longer. Angel or not, he could still die; he wasn't in heaven anymore.

The angel lifted his head and gasped at what he saw, blood and bodies everywhere, "soldiers", "doctors", and even some of the men who had once guarded him. All their bodies had been mangled so badly it was hard to tell who some of the men has once been. Some bodies had missing parts; some were even ripped in half.

'Have one of the other experiments gotten lose? Is that why they've been lax?'

Shaking his head, the angel crawled over to the ledge and leaned on it to look over the side. All he saw was an eighteen-story drop to the bottom. 'There goes my plan for escape.' The angel thought miserably. 'Not a single fire escape. I guess that's what I get for hoping there would be a way I could get out of this building and free.'

Suddenly, a gargled chuckle behind the startled angel sent him spinning around on his knees. He quickly surveyed the area, looking for the source of the chuckle. All his senses were on full alert to fight. He didn't come all this way to be capture and tortured again.

An assassin, who had a huge hole in his stomach, was looking menacingly at the angel from where he laid on the ground. Blood was tricking down from the corner of his mouth. He was dirty and bruised but the hole was the worst wound he had. "Trying to escape, you flirty little rat? Trying to get back to your precious-"

"Don't even speak her name!" The angel growled. "You have no right to even think about her, you dirty blood stained bastard! She is too good to even have you lick the dirt off of her boots." The angel snarled.

"Was." The assassin gurgled, with a menacing smile on his face. More blood was pouring out of his mouth and his chin was now completely covered in blood.

"What do you mean was?" The angel heart sank as he said this.

Smiling nastily, the assassin replied, "I killed her."

The angels face fell and all the anger he ever felt, built up inside as he glared deadly at the assassin. "You lie!"

"No. Indeed I don't this time. I killed her. I killed her myself. I was sent the day after your capture to dispose of her to ensure she wouldn't try to spring you from you cage again like the last time she did. I set her house on fire while she was asleep in it. I sat there watching until the whole thing burnt down to make sure she didn't escape. Pity though, I had hope she would try to escape so I could kill her myself with my sword. She was a bit of a legend you know. Notorious of escaping… The assassin trailed off as he saw the look in the angel's eyes or rather, the color. The most well known thing in the building was that if the angel's eyes turned gold, you were dead.

The angel started to push himself up to walk over to the assassin when… Suddenly, the assassin let out one last gurgle and died. 'Damnit I wanted to kill himself.' Angrily, he plopped back down on his butt and looked back over the side of the building. 'I don't believe it to be true. The assassin said it himself: he always lies. What makes him any different now? How do I know he's not lying now?'

'Because we both know the consequences to those found fooling around with the plans of the project. Remember we over heard them saying what would happen to the other "doctors" and they also told us this after they captured us. It was the first time they started to drug us heavily because we took out over half of the soldiers before they shot us with the drug. We were so close to escaping here and rescuing her the way she did for us. Remember it was the only thing other than the drugs that kept us sedated. The fear that if we left to see her, she would be dead.'

Tears started to pour out of the angel's amethyst eyes as he stared at the ground over the ledge. Broken, battered, and bruised, the angel laid his head on the ledge, wishing he could just die that second. He knew it wouldn't take long for him to die now. But there was always the fact that whatever was lose, could get captured at any moment and they would come for him and would revive him so they could experiment on him some more. 

_One year ago_

"_No! Don't!" Cried a raven-haired beauty as she grabbed the hand in which a man with red hair held a sword against another man's throat._

"_But this man assulted you!" Growled the man with red hair, "If I hadn't been around, he might have done worse." The red head glared his gold eyes at the man._

"_You know very well I can take care of myself. Don't take this man's life because he assaulted me. Yea it was wrong and yea I could have gotten very hurt. But no matter what, it doesn't do to stoop to his level by killing him. You're a better man than him and you will show it by not killing him." The raven headed girl said, giving the red head a pleading look._

"_Fine, only for your sake I won't, not for his." The red head's muscles loosened and he slowly pulled the sword away from the man's throat. The man quickly turned and scrambled to get away. The red head sent the man one last gold-eyed glare before turning back to the girl. His eyes softened turned back to amethyst as he stared at her. "You know, you're the most forgiving person I have ever met. Most women would have stood there and watched without a complaint. But, you're not like most women; you forgive so willingly even if they were to hurt you." The red head smiled affectionately at the woman._

_A man with red hair is lying in a bed covered in bandages and sheets. A woman with beautiful raven colored hair is sitting next to him on a stool, putting a cool wet towel on his head. The man looks very thin, a little more than usual. Just as she puts the towel on his head, both his hands shoot out to grab her. One grabs her wrist the other her throat. The woman's eyes go wide out of fear. "It's ok," she managed to whisper. "Your safe with you me. You're not at the lab anymore," the woman whispers breathlessly. The man's eyes open and he turns his golden eye glare at her. As soon as their eyes locked, he lets go of her neck and wrist as if she were red-hot. The woman fell off the stool in front of the bed, coughing roughly and holding her neck. "Sorry," the red head says looking rueful. He turned his head away when she turned to look over at him. "Don't worry about it. I don't blame you. I understand that being there so long it's natural for you to grab anyone when you're loose. You still feel like you have to escape. You also didn't know that I have rescued you from the lab and you're now safe here." The red head turned his head to look at her and she smiled sincerely at him. _

_A man with red hair and a woman with raven color hair are sitting on a blanket under a tree having a picnic. The two are leaning against the tree: the girl with her head on the guy's shoulder and the guy with his arm around the girl, with his head tilted onto hers. The woman's eyes are closed but the man's amethyst eyes are slightly open and he has a hazed look in them. "I love you." _

_The woman's eyes flew open and she quickly leaned up to look at the man. The man looks at her with a mix of fear and anxiousness. Suddenly, the woman broke into tears, and the man started to squirm and stutter. The woman threw herself at him and cried, "I love you to!" A wave of relief passed over the man's face, then, a goofy smile appeared on his face._

Sighing, the angel opened his eyes and made his final decision. Slowly, the angel pulled himself up onto the wall. He straightened himself up to his full height and stretched his arms out to his sides. He closed his eyes and tilted his head back.

"Kaoru!" The angel yelled on the top of his lungs before he leaned and started to fall backwards. His hair lifted up to surround his face in a furry mass of red.

_**Hurry I'm falling, I'm falling.**_

"Kenshin!" 

Kenshin's eyes snapped open as he heard his name called. Suddenly his descent had stopped with a quick and painful snap at his arm. Looking down at him was the sight he most longed to see for a year now. Kaoru was holding onto his arm with both arms, leaning dangerously over the side with a painful expression. Kaoru's beautiful sapphire eyes were filled with tears that just kept pouring out of her eyes. Kenshin stared up at her, wide-eyed as if he had seen a ghost. "You're alive," he whispered. Nodding, she began to try and pull Kenshin back up. Quickly, Kenshin scrambled to try and climb up the building so Kaoru wouldn't hurt herself pulling him up. There were no foot holes or anything for his hand to grab to try and pull himself up with. He suddenly went to smack himself in the head but refrained from doing so since it was neither the time nor "place" to do that. He started to flap his wings to push himself up. He winced every time his broken wing moved.

"Don't. Your wing is broken. You're not as heavy as you use to be. I can pull you up without your help. Don't worry -- you know I'm stronger than I look. Hold on, let me get my footing." Kaoru started to pull Kenshin up slowly to make sure she didn't slip. Kenshin reached out his other hand and when he was close enough to the top, he grabbed the ledge and helps pull himself up the rest of the way. Tired and exhausted beyond measure, Kenshin collapsed into Kaoru's arms, causing her knees to buckle. Kaoru sat with her legs tucked to her side and Kenshin with his head on her lap. Kenshin reached up his hand and started to wipe away her tears.

"I was told you were dead."

Kaoru looked down, startled at what Kenshin had said. A smile made it way unto her face. "Yea, they tried to assassinate me. But remember what I'm infamous for, Kenshin?" Kaoru's grin because even larger if possible, "Being the best escape artist there is. Remember?"

Kenshin smiled as a particular memory popped into his head about his favorite raven-headed beauty. "But how did you get in here? I know you're a great escape artist, but you're not good at breaking and entering." Kenshin confused face stared up at Kaoru.

"Shhh. Save you strength. You will see soon. Right now the most important thing is to get you out of here and to nurse you back to health." Kaoru said, smiling lovingly down at Kenshin.

"No."

Startled, Kaoru sort of jumped and looked down at Kenshin.

Kenshin smiled up at Kaoru, his eyes showing nothing but love and happiness. "What's most important now is that you're with me: safe and alive. And that we can be together again." Kenshin leaned up, supporting himself with his hand, and kissed Kaoru. Kaoru wrapped her arms around Kenshin's neck and pulled him closer. Both pulled each other as close as they could. Both driven by the need to be as close as possible, to make sure that it wasn't a dream that they would wake up from at any second. It had been in fact a year since they had seen one another. Both were driven almost to madness by the thought that the other might have been killed. Breaking away from one another, panting heavily, they just stared into each other's eyes knowing that if they were together than everything would be all right.

"Come on we should get going," Kaoru said as she pulled Kenshin gently up with her. They both headed back to the staircase with Kaoru's arm around Kenshin, supporting him and Kenshin staring at her thanking the heavens she was alive.

A/N: This is a song fiction I've been thinking about doing for a long time. Every time I heard this song on the radio I could see this fiction I wrote playing out in my head. Anyway, the song (if you haven't already guessed it) is savin' me by nickelback. I hope you enjoyed the fiction I wrote as much as I enjoyed writing it. If you did, leave me a little something to let me know. Thanks ja-ne!


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